Dmitry Badiarov is a violin maker and violinist.  He Lectures part time at the Tokyo National University of Fine Arts and teaches violin making at Daikanyama School of Music, Tokyo.  He is a fascinating convergence of violin making, teaching and professional playing.   It must be quite exhilarating to play music for people on an instrument that you took from a log to a work of art.    Dmitry says, “On one hand, I am devoted to the highest level of craftsmanship, on the other, I do not consider it the purpose: …

How Stradivari created his amazing sounding violins is the subject of much research, speculation and discovery.  Now a retired Texas University professor believes he has discovered one of the keys, with proof.  For years, Joseph Nagyvary a biochemist has believed that the stradivarius violins’ sound was largely due to the  chemically treated wood which he used.  Minute wood samples were burned and the resulting smoke was analyzed by an electron microprobe.  The analysis revealed the wood was treated with borax, fluorides, chromium and iron salts.
news article
read the research paper here

Violin making is a craft steeped in centuries of tradition.  The techniques and processes for making a violin were predominately developed or perfected in the golden age of violin making from the mid 17th century to the mid 18th Century by such hallowed names as Amati, Guarnieri and Stradivari.  Today violin making largely follow the traditions that these early pioneers mastered.
Watch this great video after the break for an overview of the process of making a violin.

The violin is an instrument capable of a seemingly inexhaustible depth of expression in the hands of capable musicians. Jacob Augustus Otto says it holds pre-eminent rank amongst all instruments and “it may indeed be the perfect instrument, as by the peculiarity of its construction, the minutest gradation of tone can be produced upon it.” Its range and tonal quality bear resemblance to the human voice and when well played it most certainly sings.